Britain is braced for snowy weather with multiple cities likely to be impacted by a 30-hour barrage, according to new weather data. Newly released weather maps from forecaster WXCharts.com turn purple in mid-December, with snow expected to sweep in from the Atlantic and engulf large parts of Scotland and northern England.
The weather maps show large pockets of snow gathering over the Atlantic Ocean on December 11 before gradually moving eastwards throughout the early hours of December 12. The weather is expected to land in northern Scotland at around 6am on December 11, battering Glasgow, Kilmarnock and the Highlands. Snow is likely to remain isolated to Scotland for much of the day before eventually making its way down south by late evening.
A Met Office long-range forecast for December 7 to December 16 said: “Likely a continuation of the unsettled conditions seen recently, with further showers or longer spells of rain and some strong winds affecting most if not all of the country.
“Sunday will likely start largely fine, bar a few showers, but another band of rain is expected to move east or northeast across the country during the day.
“This will clear to showers, but further bands or areas of rain are likely to move east or northeast across the country over the following several days, some of these accompanied by very strong winds.
“Temperatures will generally be near or a little above average, but feeling cool in the wind and rain. We are unlikely to see much in the way of frost or fog in this unsettled spell.”
The Met Office previously noted that predicting snow is difficult, especially weeks in advance.
The WXCharts weather data suggests that millions of people will wake up to snow on December 12, with the Isle of Man, Scottish west coast and Newcastle all likely to see outbreaks at around 6am.
Throughout the morning, the weather will move further south and become more concentrated, with major cities such as Newcastle, Blackpool, Manchester and Leeds all likely to be hit by midday.
In some parts, as much as two inches of snow is expected to fall, particularly over the Yorkshire Dales and Peak District.
Light rain will accompany snow across much of northern England, although southern England and Wales is likely to remain relatively dry.
Across the country, temperatures are expected to be cold, with midday highs of 1-2C in most areas.
